Automatic pneumatic feed.



H. I. STAGE.

AUTOMATIC PNEUMATIC FEED.

APPLICATION FILED FEB. 27. ISI?.

A 1,297,925. Patented Mar. 18,1919.

3 SHEETS-SHEET I.

WITNESSES: INVENTOR MM @Im/@waffe Y BY/@wf H. i. STAGE.

AUTOMATIC PNEUMATIC FEED. APPLICATIQN FILED rEa.27.1917.

Patented Max. 18, 1919.

3 SHEETS-SHEET 2- 1w @NN www mj WITNESSES H. |.STAGT;'1

AUTOMATIC PNEUMATIC FEED.

APPLICATION FILED FEB. 27, T917.

1,297,925. Patented Mar. 18, 1919.

3 SHEETS-SHEET 3.

UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

HAROLD I. STAGE, 0F SOULSBYVILLE, CALIFORNIA.

AUTOMATIC PNEUMATIG FEED.

Specication of Letters Patent.

Patented Mar. 18, 1919.

Application mea February 27, 1917. serial No. 151,290.

ing for pneumatic drills and like impact tools, and particularly an air or pneumatic means which is adapted to hold the drill against its Work and automatically advance the same as the depth of the hole increases. Another object of the invention is to provide an automatic'feedactuated by the recoil of the hammer which will feed the hammer and drill in a forward direction and which will permit the pneumatic drillto be 'universally used in mining, that is, for stopping, sinking or drifting.

Further objects will hereinafter appear.

The invention consists of the parts and the. construction and combination of parts as hereinafter lmore fully described and claimed, having reference to the accom panying drawings, in which- Figure 1 is a side elevation of a pneumatic drill ,partly broken away, showing the mounting and the feed which form the subject-matter of the present invention.

Fig. 2 is a planl view of Fig. 1.

Fig. 3 is a detail side elevation, taken from the opposite side of Fig. 1, showing the air valve in section which automatically cuts off the air when the drill has advanced a predetermined distance.

' Fig. 4' is an enlarged, central, longitudinal section through the feeding cylinder B.

Fig. 5 is a detail view of the piston employed in the cylinder B.

Fig. 6 is a section, similar to Fig. 4, showing a modified form of construction.

Fig. 7 is a detail view of the piston employed in the construction shown in Fig. 6.

Fig. 8 is a view, similar to Fig. 6, showing another modification.

Fig. 9 is a detail view of the piston employed in Fig. 8.

Fig. 10 is a cross section on line 10-10 of Fi 8.'

Referring to the drawings in detail, A indicates, in general, a cylinder of a standard form of pneumatic drill, 2 the chuck, 3 the drill carrled by same, and 4 the valve head. Positioned below the cylinder A and adapted to support the pneumatic drill as a whole andprovide a carriage upon which it may slide is a cylinder, generally indi` cated at B. This cylinder'is provided with a forward head 5 and a rear head 6 which are secured upon the cylinder by means of a. pair of tie-rods 7, positioned one on each slde of the cylinder and running parallel with same. 4

Mounted interiorly of the cylinder -B is a hollow piston 8, of suitable construction, and secured t0 said piston or formed in tegrally therewith is a hollow piston-rod 9 which extends through the forward head 5. Secured on the "outer forward end of the piston-rod 9 is a head member 10 `Awhich is adaptedpto support the chuck 2 of the pneumatic drill and securing the chuck rigidly to the head 10, by means of bolts 11, is a clamp 12. Secured to the rear end of the cylinder A is an arm 13, the rear end of which is downwardly extended to form a pair of bearing members 14 which are adapted to slide upon the rods 7 `Formed on the upper surface of the arm 13 is a pair of lugs 15 and slidably mounted 1n said lugs is a rod 16, on the outervend 'of which is secured a head member 17 supporting a feeding pawl 18 which is adapted to engage with ratchet teeth 19 formed on the upper side of cylinder B. Formed on the rod 16 between the bearino lugs 15 is a collar 20, and interposed 'between said. collar and the forward lug 15 is a coil spring 21 which is always under compression. The head 17 is provided with a lip 17 extending beneath a part of the arm y13. Movement of the cylindenA relative to the cylinder B forming the carriage of the construction, in a retrograde direction, is lim' ited by the distance between the head 17 Aand'end of the arm 13, shown at d. This half of an inch. Formed in the head member 10 is a cored passage 22, the lower end of which communicates with the hollow pistonrod 9, as shown in Fig. 4, while the upper end is adapted to communicate with the cylinder A by means of a flexible conllt) nection 23, a valve 2li, and a nipple 25 which is screwed into a hole drilled in the lower side ot' the cylinder e. This hole communicates with the interior of the cylinder and is adapted to be covered and uncovered by the piston 26 during its reciprocating movement, as will hereinafter be described. Adjustably secured to the tie-rod 7, on the opposite side of the cylinder, is a cutoil valve, generally indicated at *C (see Figs. 2 and 3'). This valve consists ci a casing 28 having en inlet opening 29 which is adapted to be connected with a seit-able source ci supply, as a tank receiving air from a compressor or a main pipe line connected with a compressor. lt isalso provided With an outlet opening 30, which, in this instance, is connected with the Valve head e by means ot a Flexible hose 3l. Formed in the casing 28, opposite to the intake opening 29 is a stuffing-bon 32, and slida'bly mounted in said stuiiing-box is a rod 33, on the inner end ci which is secured a' valve 3a which is adapted to move into and out of engagement With a Valve seat 35 formed at theY inner end 1of the intalre opening 29. lnterposed between the valve 34 and the innerend of the smiling-box is a coil spring 36 which is adapted to normally hold the 'valve against its seat; and secured on the outer end of the rod 33 is a trip lever 37 which is adapted to partly turn the rod 33 to release it with relation to a locking lug 38, as Will hereinafter be described.

ln actual operation, when employing a pneumatic drill supported upon a feeding cylinder as a carriage such as here shown. it is possible to secure the structure as a Whole upon a column 39 in the usual manner. ln the present instance the forward head 5 is provided with a swivel connection e0 and a clamp #ll which is adapted to grip the column 39 and secure the drill 'a Whole With relation to its Work. lilith the pneumatic drill set up, as shown in lig. l, it is only necessary to turn on the air by opening the cut-on2 Valve. rlhis is accomplished by pulling the rod 33 inan outward direction against the tension of the spring 36 to more the valve 3% away from its seat. ,'.lhe rod is then turned inwardly to bring the trip lever 37 into engagement with the locking lug 38. This secures the rod and Valve in opened position and, therefore, permits air under pressure from the source oi"- supply to enter the intake 29 and pass through the hose 30 into the valve head l of the drill. The drill Will in this manner be permitted to operate as the air under pressure entering saine Will cause the piston 2li Within the cylinder A to reciprocate a high speed.

Each forward moi/ement ot the piston causes the port or rent 262, tue lower Side' of the cylinder, to be imcoyered and permits a certain portion olf-the already spent air still hafing considerable pressure to pass throught the nipple 25, the valve 2d and hose 23 to enter the head l0. The air Will here pass through the cored passages 22 and the hollow piston-rod in the direction ci the unfeathered arrows (see lFig. Ll). rlhe air under pressure Will thus enter the rear end oi the cylinder B and force the piston 8, together with the rod 9, in a forward direction, as indicated by the large feathered arrow (see Figs. l and Ll). 'lhe forwardV movement ci' the piston-rod, caused by the entering air under pressure, will naturally advance the drill proper as this is secured, by means or the head l0, to the forward end or the piston-rod. rlhe hammer and drill are in this manner automatically advanced as the depth of the hole increases and the drill is at the same time always held against its work with a pressure proportionate to the air pressure Within the feeding cylinder, said pressure being at all times regulated by a Valve 42 mounted in the rear end of the cylinder B Which may be partly opened or closed to produce any pressure desired.

The, advance movement of the cylinder A, together With'the drill 3, is in the present instance positively taken up by the paWl 18 engaging with the teeth 19. lt is,/there iore, not necessary' to rely entirely upon the air pressure Within the Jfeeding cylinder to hold thedrill against its Work. The spring 2l, interposed vbetween the paw] and the main cylinder, furthermore forms a resilient stop against recoil when the piston strikes the drill, thereby permitting a certain amount of recoil and vibration to take place which is found to be very beneficial in practical operation as it prevents itchering'oi the drill, particularly when drilling through rock oi non-uniform Jformation.

ln actual operation it is round that considerable recoil or reciprocal movement is transmitted to the cylinder A :from the piston or hammer when the drillis operating. This reciprocal movement transmitted is utilized for the purpose of feeding the cylinder and drill in a forward direction, While the air admitted to cylinder B merely serves the function of holding the cylinder A. and the drill against the Work. The feeding operation transmitted from the recoil or reciprocal movement of the cylinder A. is substantially as follows; i

lllhen the piston or hammer Within the cylinder A. is reciproc'atinf and striking the drill, considerable recoil is transmitted to the cylinder fl.. This recoil increases in proportion to the stroke ol the piston therein; that is, the recoil or cylinder A is comparatively small when the piston is vshort stroked and gradually increases as the stroke lloof the piston increases. The recoil of the cylinder A, as reviously stated, is cushioned by the spring 21 as the lug 15 formed on arm 13 engages the end of said spring; the spring being in turn` carried by the rod 16 which is held against rearward movement by means of the head 17 and the pawl 18 which engages the teeth 19. The recoil of cylinder A. in a rearward direction is, therefore, taken up or cushioned by the spring 217 while the forward movement of the cylinder A is assisted by the stored' energy in the spring 21.

The reciprocal or recoil movement of the cylinder, as before described,` increases as the piston stroke increases and it can therefore be seen that the rearward recoil movement of the cylinder A gradually increases the tension in the spring 21 and thereby causes this to impel the cylinder A' in a for- Ward direction more `and more as the piston stroke increases. This movement finally becomes so great that the pawl 18 will jump over one tooth or advance in a forward d1- rection, thus immediately short stroking the piston and reducing the recoil in the cylinder A. This, however, gradually increases as the drill advances in the rock and the piston stroke proportionately increases Iand the recoil or reciprocal movement consequently becomes greater and greater until the pawl again jumps or advances one tooth. It can,

. Practically no attention `is, therefore, re-

quired on the part of the operatorwhile the hole is being drilled and it leaves the operator free for other Work, for instance, he may be sett/ing up and' starting two or Ithree -other drills or hemay devote his time to mucking rwhile the drill is operating. From practical experience I have found that one drill operator can often do all his own mucking while the drill is operating.

The drill as a whole upon the cylinder B untll the rear bearing arm 14 engages the outer end of the tripping lever 37. The outer end of the trip lever 'is inclined, 'as at 37 a, and will, therefore, climb up on the bearing arm 14 and out of engagement with the stop lug 38. The pressure of the sprin will then force the rod and valve back against the seat 35 and' automatically shut off the air supply to the drill'the'moment the lever 37 is tripped.

The cut-off valve, together Withthe stop adually advances lug 38 is secured upon the tie-rod 7 and may be adjusted to assume any position between the heads 5 and 6. In other words, it is possible to set the drill so that it may 'be automatically shut off the moment a redetermined depth has been obtained. 0 attention is required on the part of the 0perator once Vthedrill has been set up and started operating, as it not only automatically advances itself and holds the drill against the Work but it is also automatically stopped the moment the drill has advanced the required distance yor any predetermined distance desired.

In Fig. 6 a modified form of the structure shown in Fig. 1 is provided. Extending through the rear head '6 is a turnably mounted rod 50,`on which is formed ratchet teeth 51. This rodis hollow to permit the incoming air from the piston-rod 9 to pass through same and exert its pressure on the rear end of the piston proper. of the plston and the hollow rod 9 isa slidably mounted sleeve 52, the rear end of which is provided with an annular shoulder. 53, between which and the `forwardend of the piston is interposed a coil spring 54. Secured in the collar 53 is a pair of pins 55 which extend through slots 56 formed in the piston proper', and carried on the rear end of the collar. is a` pair of spring-actuated pawls 57 which are adapted to engage the i teeth 51. The teeth and pawls 57 together with the spring 54take the place of the springl 21 and -the pawl 18 shown in Fig. 1.

The operation of the feeding cylinders shown in Fig. 6 is the same as that-previ- 'ously described; Vthat is, the entering air forces the piston in a forward direction and recoil` is taken up by the spring 54 and thepawls 57. If it is desiredto return the piston to the rear end of the cylinder, once it has been fully advanced, it is only necessary to turn the rod 50 by means of a lever v58. This causes the teeth 51y to move-out of en agement with the pawls and permits the piston and the drill as a Whole toA be returned lto normal starting position. A

reverse .turning movement of the rod 50 will again bring the teeth into alinement with the pawls and will permit the same cycle of operation to occur.

Another modification of the cylinder B is shown in Fig. 8'. vThe piston 8 is in this instance provided with an l annular coneshaped groove 60 in which are placed two similarly shaped segments 61 and 62. Air is admitted behind the piston in the manner previously described and tendsto force the piston in the direction of thc feathered.-` arrows shown. -Any recoil or back movement is checked by the segments 61 and 62 as `the inclined faces formed between the piston and the segments will cause the segments to expand andv grip the inner surface.

Mounted interiorly -f p Bil et the cylinder, thus checking it against rearward movement. Extending through the hollow piston and rod and the headl0 is a rod 63 provided with a-handle 64. 'llhe rear end of this rod is provided with a pairV of pins 65 which extend through slots 66 in the piston and periorations made in the segments. This rod permits the segments to be moved into locking or releasing position and is particularly employed when it is desired to return the piston to normal startinoIl position; that is, inward movement of "the rod, by pressure dn the handle 6d, will move the segments away from gripping position and, theretore, permits the piston to be returned; a vent openingI 70 being provided in each instance to permit air to enter between the forward end of the piston and the head 10 when the piston is being returned.

A pneumatic drill mounted and operated in the manner described permits the drill to he universally used for stopping, drifting and sinking. The bleeding valve 42 provided always permits the pressure with in the cylinder B-to be regulated. For instance, it can readily be seen that more pressure will be required on an up-hole as the weight oi" the machine and the drill must be overcome before any pressure can be exerted to hold the drill against its work. Similarly, comparatively small pressure is required on a down-hole, as the weight of the machine is here added to the pressure to hold the drill against its work. Irllhe air employed igor this purpose does not decrease the eiciency of the machine nor the quantity or air required as the air is taken only at the very end of the piston stroke. lt is, therefore, practically speaking, eX- haust air and in reality is exhausted at this time period or during the rearward movement of the piston.

The several attachments and the mounting provided are simple and substantial in construction and will not require more attention than is ordinarily the case. The mounting, furthermore, permits any type of pneumatic drill to be employed and will not require the buying of new pneumatic drills when a :t'eed or this type is employed.

The materials and finish of the several parts oi the apparatus are such as the experience and judgment of the manufacturer may dictate.

:twish it understood that various changes in form, proportion and details ofA construction may be resorted to within the scope of the appended claims and that l do not wish to limit myself to the specihc design and construction here shown.

ll-laving thus described my invention, what l claim and desire to secure by l etters ratent is ne combination a namranuras actuated means for holding the hammer anddrill against the work when operating, and a resilient stop member cooperatively connecting the drill and carriage and coperat-` ing with the pneumatic means to feed the drill in a forward direction.

3. rlhe combination with a pneumatic hammer and drill and a carriage 'upon which they are slidabl'y mounted, of pneumatic actuated means for holding the hammer and drill against the work when operating, and a spring cushioned stop member mounted on the drill adaptedto lock the hammer and drill against return movement'onv the carriage but permitting recoil of thesame, said stop member being edected by the recoil or the hammer and drill and cooperating with a toothed rack bar to feed the hammer and drill in a forward direction on the. carriage.

4. rlhe combination with a pneumatic hammer and a cylinder in which the hammer is mounted, of a carriage upon which the cylinder and hammer are slidably mounted, pneumatically actuated means for holding the cylinder and hammer against the worlr when operating, resilient means, coperatively connecting the drill and carriage securing the hammer and cylinder against rearward movement on the carriage but permitting recoil of the cylinder, and means for transmitting the recoil movement of the cylinder to feed the cylinder and hammer in a forward direction on the carriage.

5. The combination with a pneumatic hammer and drill and a carriage on which they are slidably mounted, or' pneumatic means for holding the hammer and drill against the work when operating, and resilient means cooperatively connecting the drill and carriage actuated by a recoil produced in the hammer when the hammer is operating 'for automatically feeding the hammer and drill in a forward Adirection upon the carriage. f

6. The combination with the cylinder and drilllo3 a pneumatic hammer and a carriage upon which they are slidably mounted, of a rearwardly extending arm secured to the cylinder, a crrod slidably mounted in said arm, a spring interposed between the rod, a lug7 'formed on the arm through which the slides, on the ont et the rod,

and teeth formed on the carriage With which said pawl is engageable.

7. The combination with a pneumatic hammer ldrill and a carriage upon which it is slidably mounted, of pneumatic actuated means for feeding and holding the drill -against the Work When operating and a resilient stop member cooperatively connecting the drill and carriage permitting a substantial retrograde movement of the drill and cooperating with the pneumatic feed to advance the drill to the Work.

8. The combination With a pneumatic hammer drill and a carriage upon which it is slidably mounted, of pneumatic actuated means for feeding the hammer drill in a forward direction along the carriage when the drill is operating and a resilient stop member coperatively connecting the drill and carriage permitting a substantial retrograde movement of the drill to take up the recoil of the drill whereby said resilient stop member may also act as an additional feeding member.

9. The combination with a pneumatic hammer drill and a carriage upon which it is slidably mounted, of pneumatic actuated means for feeding and holdin the drill against the Work when operating, and a spring cushioned stop member coperatively connecting the drill and carriage permitting a substantial retrograde movement of the drill and coperating with the pneumatic feed to advance the drill to the Work.

10. The combination With a pneumatic hammer drill and a carriage upon which it is slidably mounted, of pneumatic actuated vmeans for feeding and holding the drill against the Work when operating, and a resilient. stop member comprising a pawl mounted upon a coiled spring supported upon the drill and engaging a rack upon the carriage to permit the drill to move a substantial distance relative to its carriage and to coperate With the pneumatic feed t0 advance the drill to the Work.

11. TheJ combination with a pneumatic hammer and drill and a carriage upon which 'they are slidably' mounted, of pneumatically actuated means for forcing the hammer and drill against the Work when operating, and a `stop member resiliently connecting said drill and carriage permitting the recoil of the hammer While operating said member also adapted to feed the hammer in a forward direction on the carriage.

In testimony whereof I have hereunto set my hand in the presence of two subscribing witnesses.

HAROLD I.` STAGE.

Witnesses:

.ROYAL S. Nrcnous,

ALAN R. BLOGKHAM. 

